The northern judge who swore at magistrates and feuded with neighbours over bites from her pet Alsatian has retired on medical grounds, ending the prospect of disciplinary action against her.

Beatrice Bolton, who seldom pulled her own punches during 15 years on the criminal bench in Newcastle upon Tyne and the north east, will miss out on the full legal career she might have expected – she is 58; and she will have to live with the shame her actions have brought upon her.

These are not negligible penalties, but the long delay over an inquiry into her conduct, while she was suspended on full pay, has raised issues over apparently different approaches to misbehaviour in court. Do these have anything to do with the miscreant's position? And why does an investigation like the one into Judge Bolton's behaviour take so long?

After receiving a number of complaints about comments reportedly made by Ms Beatrice Bolton, a Circuit Judge, following her conviction under the Dangerous Dogs Act, the Office for Judicial Complaints investigated the matter in accordance with the Judicial Discipline Regulations 2006.The judge has, however, retired on medical grounds before the disciplinary process was formally concluded. As a result, the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice have decided no further disciplinary action is required.

Guardian and Northerner reader Simon Smith has emailed about this. I doubt he is alone in wondering why the judge's public reference to her conviction in court as "a fucking travesty" didn't lead to 'swift and meaningful sanctions.' He says:

It is absolutely disgraceful, and is the very antithesis of Cameron's Big Society. Instead, this is the 'us and them' system.

Contrast Judge Bolton's behaviour with that of a callow and unsophisticated youth, as reported by the Guardian in September. This lad foolishly took a photo in court on his mobile phone. He immediately apologised; nevertheless, he received a summary sentence of two months' imprisonment. This why we have disenfranchised youth on the streets rebelling against an unjust and divisive society.

Perhaps the Guardian could take a straw poll of its readers, and ask which of these two cases of contempt were the more serious ?

Good idea. Before deciding, you might like to read more about the case, in which Judge Bolton was also ticked off for chewing gum during the proceedings. You can read more about the other case, involving the young man with the camera, here.

They can be cuddly. An Alsatian at a dog rescue centre. Photograph: RSPCA

You may also be interested in one of the few pieces I've seen in which someone has a good word to say for the judge: her children, including a foster-daughter whom she took in from an abusive home. That's here.

Finally there's the interesting conclusion here of the postman incident, described in the first link in this post. Judge Bolton narrowly escaped another Alsatian prosecution because the attack was on her land and not in a public place.

You be the judge. It isn't always easy. But it would certainly be interesting to hear what you think.